


A Tight Knit Family

by lookimadeahat



Category: Batman - All Media Types, Gotham (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Canon Divergence, Crossover, F/F, F/M, Falsettos - Freeform, Kissing, M/M, No Smut, Suggestive Themes, Yes that MASTERPIECE by William Finn, from both canons
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-07
Updated: 2019-08-18
Packaged: 2020-08-11 13:43:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,975
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20154556
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lookimadeahat/pseuds/lookimadeahat
Summary: Something of a crossover (thought not quite?) betweenGothamandFalsettosin which:Edward Nygma recently divorced his wife, Isabella, to make a new life with his lover, Oswald Cobblepot. For the sake of his own comfort and a desire for his son, Jason, to have a good relationship with him, Ed wants to maintain a "normal" family life, despite their rather...unique family dynamic.Important Note:Diverges from both canons and Oswald doesn't have anything wrong with his leg.





	1. A Tight Knit Family

**Author's Note:**

> So, I'm a little nervous posting this, because I wasn't sure if people would want to read it, but I decided to bite the bullet. It's a work in progress and would divert from both canons, but the plot is largely inspired by _Falsettos_. I can't say a ton more without spoiling the whole show, though half of the descriptions of it do that anyway, but I will say it would not share the ending of _Falsettos_.
> 
> Please let me know if you're interested in seeing a full fic! I will only continue to post chapters if people actually want to read it.
> 
> I have a few more chapters ready and can easily continue and finish it, as I know what I plan to do with it if people are interested. I noticed a lot of Marvin's characteristics fit with Ed and many of Whizzer's traits fit very well with Oswald, and, well, my imagination ran wild; so, I've tried to blend the characters together in a unique way.

Ed sat on the sofa, shifting uncomfortably, while Oswald sat beside him. The dark green sofa was a deceptively unpleasant place to sit for how plush and cozy it looked. Apparently, looks could be deceiving...especially when it came to the office furniture of Dr. Mendel Weisenbachfeld. 

Across from the two men sat Ed’s wife—well, now _ex_-wife—Isabella, on a chair that may have once been a pleasant cream color, but was now stained a sickly brownish-yellow. Though it looked decidedly more Spartan than the antique sofa, he wondered if it was more comfortable than his own seat, in keeping with what seemed to be the theme of the room: deception. Rather humorous, and—he hoped—not telling, symbolism for a psychiatrist’s office.

Mendel had been Ed’s psychiatrist for years, but it seemed he did “group” sessions in a different room than his typical one-on-one sessions. While Ed was grateful—he wasn’t fond of the idea of grimy children dragged to therapy by their recently divorced parents touching things in the room where he, a responsible, _clean_ adult, had therapy sessions—he did wish Mendel would spare a few dollars to improve its miserable furnishings.

As he sat in his musings, Ed heard Mendel clearing his throat, and it was only then that he realized no one had spoken a word beyond basic introductions since arriving ten minutes earlier.

“So,” Mendel said, “Is there anything anyone wants to talk about, or is the goal of this therapy session to sit in silence and more or less ignore each other? I mean, I get paid either way, so if that’s what you all want to do, have at it, but I don’t think it will make for a very useful session. And, believe it or not, I do prefer to _help_ people, instead of acting as one more place frustration to fester.”

“Oh, I assure you, Mendel, there is no animosity here. I can’t speak for Oswald or Isabella, but I simply got lost in thought.”

“Do you want to share any of those thoughts? It could be good to get them out on the table.”

“Um—”

“Dear God, Edward,” Isabella snapped, exasperated, “This whole thing was your idea, anyway. Don’t tell me you dragged me all the way down here to waste my time.”

Ed took a deep breath, barely managing to avoid rolling his eyes. “Very well. What do you want to talk about?”

She shrugged her crossed arms, refusing to make eye contact.

“Why don’t you start with sharing your goals for these sessions, Ed? You’ve shared some of them with me, but I’m sure I don’t know all of them, and it will be good for Oswald and Isabella to know why they’re here,” Mendel suggested.

“Alright,” Ed conceded, standing up to simultaneously face everyone in the room, “So, this is how I view the situation: After many, many years of denial and self-discovery, I’ve acknowledged my...desires, my _needs,_ and have started to make changes to my life to accommodate those changes.”

Isabella scoffed loudly, and Ed’s head immediately swiveled to glare at her. She met Ed’s gaze with an equally harsh glare.

“Did you have something to say?” he challenged.

“No. Go ahead,” she said sardonically, rolling her eyes dramatically as Ed directed his gaze away from her once again. Ed still noticed.

“Fine, act like a petulant child. How would you like me to put it? I divorced my wife and abandoned my child so I could gallivanting off with a…” Ed’s eyes shot to Oswald, softening a bit on instinct as their eyes met, "..._friend._” He and Oswald gazed lovingly at each other for another moment, meeting Isabella’s eyes once again with a cold smirk after breaking his and Oswald’s gaze, “Is that what you wanted, Isabella?”

“At least it’s accurate,” Isabella sneered.

“You cannot be serious! I love Jason, don’t you _dare_ imply—”

“Alright!” Mendel interjected, clearly trying to diffuse the situation, “Good start. Let’s continue.”

Ed continued to glare at Isabella in silence for another moment, before sighing and vowing to himself to not look at her until he had finished stating his goals. It wouldn’t do him any good to argue before he could even make his case. He closed his eyes briefly, then opened them to look at Mendel and Oswald, pointedly ignoring Isabella.

“Despite the recent changes in circumstances...and living arrangements, I still want us to be a family. I want to be a father to my son, I want to have a good relationship with my wife, and I want to...have a happy life with my lover.”

He noticed Oswald blush slightly at the comment, a small, shy smile gracing his features for a mere second before falling away to the rather impassive expression he’d been keeping before. Ed felt butterflies, though he’d never admit it. Oswald was...adorable. He was sweet, and he was kind, and he was almost everything Ed could ever ask for.

“I want family dinners, all four of us, and I want domesticity and…” he waved his hands about, searching for the right word, “I want a tight knit family. I don’t think that’s too much to ask.”

“You don’t think that’s _too much to ask?_ I suppose it’s a lot easier for you to say that, considering you’re not the one whose spouse _cheated_ on them.”

“Oh, _come on,”_ Ed started, about to break his promise to himself a mere two minutes after making it, only to be interrupted by Oswald.

“She does have a point, Ed. I don’t think either of us can presume to know how she feels.”

Ed raised an eyebrow at that, shocked at his lover for defending the woman Ed left for him. _“Excuse_ me?”

“You betrayed me, Edward,” Isabella said, all venom gone from her voice, “Do you know what that feels like?”

_Yes,_ his brain obnoxiously supplied. He snapped, frustrated and pushing down the thought, “It will get _better._ If we work together, maintain a normal life, we can expedite the healing process!”

“Normal?” she gave a sad chuckle, breaking Ed’s resolve, and causing him to look over and see the beginnings of a few tears brewing behind her eyes. “So, what? I make your dinners, do your laundry, and take care of everything you don’t want to take care of, all for you to go home to _someone else_ at the end of the day? You want me to be your wife in every way, except the ones that actually matter.”

“It matters to me.”

“You’re unbelievable,” Isabella scoffed, though her anger was far less palpable than before, much of its strength replaced by what Ed tried to convince himself wasn’t heartbreak, “Do you actually think we can all just get along like nothing ever happened? Because if you believe that, you’re delusional.”

“It’s not—” he shouted, before forcing himself to calm down as he noticed that Mendel looked as though he was about to interfere. Ed tried again, noticeably more relaxed this time. “I know we’ll probably fight. I’m _sure_ we will, but I’m trying to make this easier on all of us. No one else seems to understand that. I am simply making an effort to mitigate the fallout of our...situation.”

Ed felt fingers delicately entwine with his left hand and looked down to see that Oswald had moved down the sofa, closer to where Ed was standing.

“I’m willing to try it,” Oswald offered, with a sweet smile.

“Wonderful!” Mendel exclaimed, clasping his hands together with a loud clap. “Isabella?” he asked, “Do you think you’d be willing to give it a try?”

“I don’t know,” she responded, studying the floor.

“Isabella,” Ed said, untangling his hand and walking over to take Isabella’s hand in his own, “You have to admit, this is what’s best for us. You’ll all see it in time,” he continued, standing and looking between all three of the other people in the room, then turning his attention solely to Isabella once again, “Please try it? For me?”

The following silence was stifling. Ed’s muscles rippled with the effort of keeping himself quiet. Everyone looked at Isabella, expectantly. Finally, after several moments, Isabella’s quiet voice broke the strained silence. 

“I think I’m done for today.”

She grabbed her purse and stood, making to leave the room.

“Isabella, wait!” Ed commanded, stepping in front of her. She met his eyes for a moment, staring intensely, before shaking her head a pushing by him and walking through the door. He turned to follow her, but was stopped by Mendel.

“Let her go. Don’t try to make her do something she doesn’t want to. Just give her some time.”

Ed glanced back at the door, and he noticed a soft smile on Isabella’s face. She was looking at Mendel. When Isabella noticed Ed, her smile fell and she quickly closed the door behind her.

Perhaps there was still hope. Perhaps Ed could convince her to come to another session. Perhaps it would all work out.

It would all work out. And then everyone—Jason, Isabella, and Oswald, heck, even Mendel—would have to admit: Ed was right, just like he always was. He would finally get everything he ever wanted.

Ed wanted everything. And he would get it _all._


	2. The Thrill of First Love (Pt. 1)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Each chapter will be based off of a song-mostly in order. The song title will also be the chapter title.

“We still have—” Doctor Weisenbachfeld looked down at his watch, “About forty more minutes in this session. Would you two like to continue?”

“What would we talk about?” Oswald asked, slightly nervous at the prospect of having his and Ed’s relationship dissected.

“Anything you want to,” Mendel replied with a disarming smile.

It wasn’t that Oswald didn’t want to be here. He did. He wanted to support Ed with everything...and keep Ed in check. Oswald understood that Ed could have a..._difficult_ time with putting others’ feelings in perspective, and he also didn’t want Ed’s ex to hate him or Ed. But he thought they’d be talking through Ed’s _old_ relationship, not _their_ new one.

“I mean, I’d like to talk about it,” Ed offered, sitting down on the couch beside Oswald once again. Oswald had to move a bit to make room. He rolled his eyes but stopped halfway through when he felt Ed’s hand come to rest gently on his thigh, causing him to smile sweetly at Ed.

“Alright. As long as you’re not trying to use this as an excuse to complain about me,” he teased.

“Of course not, _dear,”_ Ed snipped back playfully, “I just haven’t told Mendel much about..._us.”_

Oswald cocked an eyebrow in disbelief. _“Really?”_

Ed blushed and looked down, a rare—and rather adorable—spark of self-consciousness. Oswald melted, though he was careful not to show it in his expression, and took Ed’s hand in his own. As he met Ed’s eyes, a somewhat indecent smirk stretching across his face, Oswald sighed dramatically, “I suppose I’ll acquiesce, but you will owe me.”

“I can live with that.”

That smile on Ed’s face, as if he’d won some game Oswald didn’t even know they were playing, irked Oswald. Ed was always _winning,_ even when there was nothing to be won. But he didn’t exactly want to bring that up at their first, and rather impromptu, couples therapy session. “So, Doctor, what should we start with?”

“Mendel, please,” Mendel scoffed, though good-naturedly. The good Doctor was in desperate need of assistance in regards to his wardrobe. Much like Ed, he seemed to have an affinity for wash-and-wear: a rather atrocious brown sweater—which looked like it had seen _far_ better days—framed a button-down that somehow managed the seemingly impossible feat of being both woefully dull and insufferably loud at the same time. His jeans were ill-fitting and his hair was styled in a perm bad enough it might justify the murder of the barber who was either cruel or delusional enough to tell Mendel _that_ was a good idea. At least his shoes were somewhat salvageable. 

Oswald snapped himself out of his mental assessment of the man’s fashion sense to find both Ed and Mendel staring at him expectantly. He shook his head clear, putting on his most charming smile, Oswald said, “Sorry. Mendel.”

“It’s...fine,” Mendel replied. He seemed a bit uncomfortable...How long had Oswald been staring? “How long have you two been together?” 

“Nine months,” Oswald replied immediately.

“Ten months,” Ed answered at precisely the same moment.

Both men paused and looked at each other quizzically, simultaneously saying, “I’m sorry, what?”

“We’ve been together for nine months,” Oswald reiterated, sure of himself, though likely sounding a bit confused. Ed probably thought he was winning their nonexistent chess match if he had picked up on Oswald’s confusion, Oswald thought bitterly.

“Ten months.”

_“Nine_ months.”

_“Ten_ months.”

“Nine months!”

“Ten months!” Ed closed his eyes, taking a deep breath before continuing, “We have a good life together. We have enough money to take care of our needs and _most_ of our wants. I go to work, and when I come home I’m greeted by a wonderful...dinner.”

Oswald scoffed. To think he’d been foolish enough to believe Ed would finish that phrase with the word _man._

“And even if we don’t al—”

“Won’t,” Oswald chirped in.

“Don’t.”

“Won’t.”

_“Don’t_ always _agree,”_ Ed shot Oswald a rather amused look as he finished his sentence, “I very much enjoy our time together.”

“Hm,” Oswald hummed pleasantly, crossing his legs. Leaning forward and resting his chin on his hand, he teased through a serene smile, “What did that admission cost you?”

“I suppose we’ll see, won’t we.”

“I suppose we will.”

“Ahem,” Mendel cleared his throat awkwardly, “So, nine and a half months?”

Both Oswald and Ed stared at him, clearly unimpressed.

“Never mind,” he half-squeaked, “Go on. Or, um, when—or how did you first meet?”

Oswald smirked, noticing that Ed’s cheeks had immediately turned red upon the mention of their first meeting.

“Would you like to tell the story, Eddie?” Oswald asked, innocent tone belied by the way he was grinning: like the cat who got the cream. His grin only grew more smug as he subtly moved his hand behind Ed’s back to lie a bit _too_ low and, without taking his eyes off of Ed’s ever-reddening cheeks, he purred “Or should I?”

Ed’s finally broke and glanced at him, still refusing to turn his head towards his partner. His eyes only grew more nervous as he saw Oswald’s grin.

“I’ll tell it,” he squeaked, no doubt imagining how descriptive Oswald would be just to torment him. Ed cleared his throat, smiling at awkwardly at Mendel, “Um, we met in college. It had been a while since we last saw each other when we reconnected.”

Mendel smiled and nodded, seemingly oblivious to Ed’s embarrassment. “Did you two have a class together?”

“What?” Ed asked distractedly, voice cracking as Oswald slid his hand—still hidden from Mendel’s sight—even lower and gave Ed’s bottom a quick pinch.

Mendel furrowed his brows at what was undoubtedly an odd reaction from his vantage point. “In college? Did you two have a class together?”

“Oh, no,” Ed laughed awkwardly. He seemed to be relaxing, and Oswald was having way too much fun to let this be over already. “We were in different years, so we never took any classes together. We just—”

“That’s true. We didn’t take any classes together,” Oswald interrupted, “But I think we still learned a _lot_ together while we were there. Don’t you agree, dear?”

He cocked his head, expression the perfect portrait of the innocent, devoted lover, and gently placed his free hand on Ed’s thigh; not enough on its own to be suggestive, but, with Ed already so riled up, it was plenty.

Ed swallowed hard, shooting daggers at Oswald when Mendel looked down at his watch—no doubt wondering when the Hell he could escape this rather uncomfortable therapy session.

“That we did,” Ed replied through a tight-lipped smile. Then, eyes brightening for a mere second, he dropped his head in his hands for a moment before looking up, eyes squinted. “I’m sorry. I just have _such_ a headache all of a sudden,” he croaked.

Oswald bit the inside of his cheeks to hide a smile. That manipulative bastard always knew exactly how to get what he wanted.

“I don’t know what happened, it just sort of—”

“Came onto you?” Oswald supplied, brow quirked in amusement.

“Exactly,” Ed replied, voice throaty, “I hope it’s not a migraine. It feels like the beginning of a migraine.”

“Do you need to continue the session at another time?” Mendel offered. How could this man be a therapist? Oswald always thought you had to have at least some sense of insight into whether or not your patients were lying. But then again, maybe Mendel just didn’t want to call him out on it.

“I think so,” Ed rasped, voice pitifully weak, “I’m so sorry. I’ll call in to reschedule. Is that alright?”

“That’s perfectly fine.”

Oswald gathered their coats, as Ed seemed to be going for the Oscar with his performance, and the two men left the office after a polite, but short, goodbye.

As soon as the door shut, Oswald found himself pinned against the wall between Ed’s strong hands. The man’s eyes were glimmering with desire, and Oswald felt his pulse quicken.

“You are _such_ a tease,” Ed growled, leaning in and capturing Oswald’s lips in a rather heated kiss.

“Is this what you meant by headache?” Oswald teased, grabbing Ed’s hips and pulling them against his own.

Ed smirked and leaned in, nipping at Oswald’s lip before starting to make his way down Oswald’s neck. Rather reluctantly, Oswald pushed him back.

“Perhaps we should take this home?” he breathed, “We wouldn’t want your therapist finding out you lied.”

_“Fine.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That was the first part of The Thrill of First Love (with some allusions to _In Trousers_)
> 
> Because YES!! Whizzer, Whizzer Brown, I care.
> 
> Ah, to be fair though, I'm a pretty innocent soul (fair warning, this is as saucy as it's gonna get), so I didn't know what Whizzer Going Down was about for a long time. I still don't 100% get it, but I get as much of it as I want to XD

**Author's Note:**

> For those who want to know where everyone fits if you haven't seen/listened to _Falsettos_ before and plan to watch/listen to it:  
Ed is Marvin  
Oswald is Whizzer  
Isabella is Trina  
Mendel is Mendel because Mendel is an ICON who cannot be replaced  
Jason is Jason (which was a struggle, because, much like Mendel, both Martin and Jason are ICONS but the kids who have played Jason generally bear more of a resemblance to Ed and Isabella than Martin does, so, yeah, Jason won)
> 
> For anyone interested in checking out the show, [here](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Sv4vx5Qm9w&list=PL4lKArXvpPo0EwsL0gIjO8SuUzQxaFmEI) is a link to a playlist, including lyrics because you can miss so much when you miss a line (Bill Finn is truly amazing).
> 
> ****Fair warning - this musical can be a bit NSFW (foul language, suggestive themes, etc.)**


End file.
